All things Swedish...

[wa3zrm]

I've begun this thread to post news, info and amusements from the homeland of snus, Sweden. So if you have a Swedish story you would like to share, please post it in this thread.

[wa3zrm]

Sweden to reintroduce military service

Around 4,000 young Swedes, 18-year-olds of both sexes, are expected to be called up each year.
The move was "an intelligent proposal given that we have seen for a number of years now that volunteers are not sufficient to supply either the quality or quantity of soldiers" needed, Johan Osterberg, a researcher from the School for Advanced Defence Studies, told news agency TT.
Sweden is not a NATO member but has signed the body's Partnership for Peace programme launched in 1994 to develop military cooperation between NATO and non-member countries.

(Excerpt) Read more at m.france24.com ...

[taffyjock]

Sweden wants to send condoms to frisky ETs https://youtu.be/Vlg5MzevpBA

[wa3zrm]

Swedes up in arms over EU Christmas glögg 'ban'

There are few things more precious to Swedes than their traditional drinking habits, and a new EU-wide rule change affecting one of their favorite Christmas drinks has some of the normally tranquil Scandinavians up in arms.
A yuletide tradition in Sweden since the 1800s, glögg (a variation of mulled wine) is consumed at parties and gatherings throughout the Christmas period, and is often strengthened with additional spirits to give it an extra kick. But now, some drinks previously labeled as glögg will no longer be allowed to carry that name, with revised EU legislation on the labeling of aromatized wine products kicking in. The rule changes mean that in order to be called glögg, the alcohol in the drink must come from wine spirits or dried grape distillates. If the alcohol comes from something else like distilled sugar however, it can no longer be called glögg. […]
“The EU’s incompetent idiots have once again shown what big questions they work with,” wrote Bengt Runner. “I have always been against the EU,” added Elena Nilsson.
“Bloody EU. Even more rules and prohibitions from there: a vote on membership now just as the wise English people done!” demanded Arto Rainola. …

(Excerpt) Read more at thelocal.se ...

[Burnsey]

So, does it get them one step closer to Swexit???

[wa3zrm]

Swedes Snap Up Illegal Batons and Stun Guns for Self-Defense (Authorities "Puzzled")
-Despite Swedes' reputation as a peaceful and mild-mannered people, confiscations of batons at Stockholm's Arlanda Airport have exploded in 2016, Swedish state broadcaster SVT revealed. According to Swedish customs authorities, batons are being illegally ordered abroad by Swedish citizens for self-defense.Swedish authorities were obviously taken aback by the findings and failed to produce a reasonable explanation. We honestly do not know why people have started to smuggle more batons," Mats Pettersson argued. "Most people we talked to said they need batons to protect themselves and don't intend to use them for criminal activities," Mats Pettersson continued.

(Excerpt) Read more at m.sputniknews.com ...

[wa3zrm]

A nation wrecked by immigration: Do-gooding Swedes turn against migrants amid violence
UK Express ^ |

SWEDEN’S open-door policy has WRECKED Europe’s most liberal nation as the Swedes turn against migrants amid an unprecedented rise in violence and sex attacks.
For years Sweden has regarded itself as a “humanitarian superpower” - making its mark by offering refugee to those fleeing war and persecution.
But people’s patience with their visitors is wearing thin following a year of violence, sickening sex assaults and the death of social worker Alexandra Mezher, 22, who was knifed to death at an asylum centre for unaccompanied children at the hands of a Somalian migrant who claimed he was 15.
At the time, her grieving mother, an immigrant herself from the Middle East said: “Immigration has destroyed Sweden.”
Sweden, a country of 9.8million, took 163,000 asylum seekers in 2015.
The influx included 35,400 unaccompanied minors - nine times more than 2015.
But nothing could prepare Stockholm for the rise in crime and an abuse of the criminal system.
And so much so, a nation, which once prided itself on giving a warm welcome to outsiders, has reported a rise in arson attacks against migrant shelters, while support for the right-wing Swedish Democrats has surged.
In January, authorities were forced to admit there were at least 70 girls in migrant centres were asylum child brides, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Meanwhile, officials fear many migrant children are slipping through the net by lying about their age. Some 667 minors reportedly had their ages adjusted by officials in 2015.
In one horrific case, a Afghan called Ali Bahaman reportedly raped a 15-year-old girl at a children’s psychiatric clinic in Stockholm.
He claimed to be 15, but dental examinations showed he was actually around 19-years-old.
And with initial good intentions, now comes the heavy backlash as the famously liberal nation crumbles under the pressure of the influx of refugees who are believed to have double the chance of becoming employed than a native Swede.
The Swedish Migration Board now keeps the location of migrant centres confidential - a decision made after a note was posted on the door of a hotel housing migrants in north Sweden saying: “This is the last warning. Leave our town.”
While welfare and housing benefits to asylum seekers have been cut.
But not everyone is hostile - Lutheran Bishop Eva Brunne called on churches in Sweden to remove crosses so it didn’t offend Muslims, which was met with an almighty backlash.
Tim Stanley, writing for the Daily Telegraph added: “Liberals beware: evidence is mounting the open borders are unpopular and will not stay open for long.
“An act of generosity is likely to be followed by an act of intolerance - as Sweden’s asylum seekers will tell you.”

[Premium Parrots]

Soon......coming to a country near you.

[wa3zrm]

Sweden bans Christmas lights on state-owned poles
Speisa/SVT ^ |

Unlike previous years, there will be no Christmas lights in many Swedish towns this Christmas, reports SVT . Formally the new ban is because of "security reasons".
The Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) will stop allowing municipalities to put up their Christmas lights on light poles that the authority manages, and in many small towns, it means that the central streets actually do not get any Christmas lights at all.
The change is a victory for those who want to tone down the reminder of the country's Christian traditions, but according to the Swedish Transport Administration, the decision for the drastic change is "security".
- Poles are not designed for the weight of Christmas lights, and we have to remove anything that should not be there. We guarantee safety first, says Eilin Isaksson, national coordinator at the Swedish Transport Administration, to SVT.
How many poles that have fallen down in previous years because of the Christmas lights is not clear. It is clear, however, that municipalities have difficulty understanding the Swedish Transport Administration's priorities.
- In our municipality we have problems with wildlife and fences, that people are dying because of animals running on the roads. We think this is a more important issue for the Swedish Transport Administration to handle than to turn off our Christmas lights, says mayor in Lititz, Marie Johansson, to SVT.

[Premium Parrots]

so..........now when someone immigrates from poland to sweden the swedish state then owns them? wth is with that? Those people can hold up a few xmas lites, they aren't that dam heavy. I do wonder where to plug them in tho.

[wa3zrm]

[wa3zrm]

Swedes hold candelight vigils for dogs killed by wolves

Evening marches were held in the towns of Torsby, Ockelbo, Uppsala, Mora, Jönköping, and Nora, all of which are places where hunting is a popular sport.
“It’s a problem that is just getting worse and worse,” Sofie Rockmyr, from Torsby, a small town close to the Norwegian border, told The Local. “It’s about a lot more than just hunting dogs, it’s also pets and livestock.”
According to the local Värmlands Folkblad newspaper, the group held a minute's silence for dogs who had been killed.
Rockmyr said that although her own hunting dogs had so far escaped unscathed, several of her friends had lost animals to wolf attacks.
“It’s always something you’re afraid of,” she said. “I know lots of people whose dogs have been killed, and also dogs that have survived after being attacked by a wolf.”
The protesters were calling for the issue of permits to hunt wolves in the area, in a move to bring down the population.
Sweden this year issued a temporary ruling allowing 14 of the country’s then estimated 400 wolves to be killed between January 2 and the end of the hunting season on February 15th.

(Excerpt) Read more at thelocal.se ...

[Snusdog]

Dog on dog crime has got to end.

[wa3zrm]

Swimming pool segregation on the rise to accommodate Muslim migrants in Sweden
express.co.uk ^ |

SEGREGATED swimming hours are on the rise in Sweden to encourage more Muslim women to exercise.
The rise in women-only swimming hours has been promoted as offering a safe space for women and girls who may not be comfortable with showing their bodies in swimwear, or who hold conservative beliefs rooted in religion.
It follows reports of sexual attacks in swimming pools by migrant men across Europe, though the scheme is not specifically in reaction to the assaults.
The introduction of gender-segregated hours for religious reasons has sparked a fierce debate in Sweden and has been criticised by the government.
An investigation has been launched by the Discrimination Ombudsman to decide whether the scheme is violating equality law by discriminating men.
Women-only hours have been offered in Swedish swimming pools since the late Nineties - but there has been a recent increase in popularity after the country accepted tens of thousands of refugees from the Middle East.
Almost 163,000 people applied for asylum in Sweden last year.
Sweden's minister for democracy has blasted the idea of gender segregation for religion reasons.
Alice Bah Kuhnke said: "To claim in the name of religion that you have the right that different parts of society - for example swimming pools, buses and trains - should adapt to your right to believe in what you wish, that is taking things too far."
Ms Kuhnke said she believes rules that women and men should swim together in public pools is "a victory after many years and generations of gender-equality struggle”.
Per Holfve, a spokesman for the government's Discrimination Ombudsman, said: "We follow the debate and the news feeds and feel that there is a need to clarify this.
"The basic rule of the law is that gender discrimination is forbidden, but if there is a justified means, there can be exceptions made in an appropriate way.
"If the Discrimination Ombudsman rules it is discriminatory against men, the women-only hours at Sweden's swimming pools are likely to be banned.

[wa3zrm]

Swedish Government to establish gender equality agency

In its Budget Bill, the Swedish Government states its intention to establish a gender equality agency. The agency will help ensure effective implementation of gender equality policy. Before the end of the year, the Government will also present a new national strategy, including an action plan for 2017–2020, to prevent and combat men’s violence against women. Some of the initiatives in the strategy are the result of negotiations with the Left Party.
"The Government's feminist policy must have a clear impact and make a difference to people's lives. Several inquiries have concluded that the organisation of gender equality policy is fragmented and inadequate. A gender equality agency is needed to guarantee that political priorities gain traction, so that work towards a gender-equal society can be more strategic and effective. It is crucial to develop gender equality efforts as we modernise the Swedish model," says Sweden's Minister for Children, the Elderly and Gender Equality, Åsa Regnér.
In the Budget Bill, the Government states its intention to establish a gender equality agency, to be operational from the beginning of 2018. The need for such an agency was one important conclusion of the Gender Equality Inquiry, which presented its final report to Ms Regnér in October 2015. The Swedish National Audit Office report also deems that there is a need for an institutional structure that strengthens gender equality work and helps ensure a long-term approach and sustainability.
The gender equality agency's work will be based on the overarching gender equality policy objective that women and men must have the same power to shape society and their own lives, and the Government's associated sub-objectives.

(Excerpt) Read more at government.se ...